The muscle car era actually started in the late 1950s, when auto manufacturers started offering high performance features on their varying lines of passenger cars. A general description of a muscle car is a standard passenger car with a larger than normal or a highly modified engine that increases the power to weight ratio dramatically over stock specifications. Even in the 1950s, a car’s performance was very important to the people who wanted more speed out of their personal automobile.
Many people who were involved in the transport of illegal alcohol would take powerful Cadillac and Oldsmobile engines and stuff them in lighter Ford sedans. The muscle car can trace its roots to those old time hot rod builders. In 1956, Cadillac introduced an El Dorado with a huge 365 cubic inch engine with two four-barrel carburetors. In 1958, Chevrolet was the first manufacturer to introduce a family sedan with a 348 W engine that could be ordered with three two-barrel carburetors. Some auto enthusiasts state that the 1958 Impala was the first muscle car.
The muscle car era is said to have had its zenith from 1960 through 1971. This is when all the car manufacturers were stuffing big engines in cars and setting the roads ablaze with tire smoking monsters such as the 413 cubic inch 1962 Dodge Darts, the 409 cubic inch 1961 Chevrolets, the 406 cubic inch 1962 Fords, and the 421 cubic inch Pontiacs. The muscle car era had come of age in America. A fast dependable car with a guarantee could be bought off the show room floor Friday afternoon and raced the same evening. That was the definition of a true muscle car.
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